Weight Watchers Diet Wine Launches in UK, Australia

Nothing's more of a buzzkill than realizing your beloved glass of merlot is adding on the pounds — and points — on the Weight Watchers program. Fortunately for dieters in the U.K. and Australia, the Australian winemaker McWilliams is launching a Weight Watchers-branded line of wines.

Yes, you read that right — The Drinks Business reports the four new wines come with a lower alcohol range and fewer calories, making them a better choice for your diet. The varietals? Harmony Sparkling Brut NV, Harmon.K. publication Harper's that joining up with Weight Watcher's was a "no-brainer." "This is a real departure for wine and it gives us the potential to get in to the mainstream grocery basket. The power of linking up with the Weight Watchers name, which is the 14th biggest grocery brand in the U.K., is pretty exciting and a real no-brainer," he said to Harper's. He noted to The Drinks Business that consumers want the wine experience, including the taste, without the additional calories.

It might sound strange, but Weight Watchers' wine is nothing new. McWilliams already works with a Weight Watchers endorsed wine in Australia. The U.K. branch of Weight Watchers sells its own wine that's only one point per glass, in Fruity White, Refreshing Rosé, Zinfandel, Purely Pink, or Smooth Red varieties. (We're pretty sure those aren't real styles of wine.) The Weight Watchers' point system, which was revised in 2010, states that one glass of red wine is four points. So what will you have — the high-calorie wine, or the diet version?